AMBLER — The Act II Playhouse and students at Upper Dublin High School partnered to stamp out bullying in an original production titled “The Upper Dublin Bullying Project” April 12.

Bill D’Agostino, director of communications at the playhouse, said the show took real interviews conducted by students with Upper Dublin teachers, classmates, parents, guidance counselors, administrators and other community members and molded them into a show that addressed bullying as a social issue. Eighteen students in the Theater I class at Upper Dublin worked in pairs to interview two people and get their thoughts on the topic of bullying.

He said the production was inspired by the play “The Laramie Project,” presented by the Techtonic Theater Project, which chronicled the kidnapping and murder of Matthew Shepard in Laramie, Wyo., in October 1998, through interviews with the individuals directly involved with the case such as police officers and witnesses.

D’Agostino said he and Upper Dublin theater teacher Debbie Thompson had worked together on smaller projects in the past, but wanted to do something “a little more in-depth” this time. They recruited the help of Caroline Blasi, a graduate student working as a student teacher, who worked directly with students to direct the piece.

While there was no “catalyzing event” like with the Shepard case, the topic was still relevant enough to create a show, he said.

“It was really important to me for it to be student driven,” D’Agostino said, adding there was no agenda about what the show would look like except he wanted to feature a “variety of people.”

Students began the project in February by writing journal entries about their hopes for the project and from earning about “The Laramie Project.” They then defined the community and described Upper Dublin High School.

“It’s a tough project to explain to them at first,” he said. “It’s not a play like ‘Death of a Salesman’ or ‘Romeo and Juliet.’”

Students worked in the classroom studying basic interviewing skills before descending upon the school community, he said. After the two rounds of interviews were completed, students transcribed their interviews and were then asked follow-up questions to respond to what they learned.

From those transcripts, D’Agostino said he wrote a 35- to 40-minute piece that touches such topics as cyberbullying, bystanders and personal bullying stories. One teacher’s story was his personal story about a former student who committed suicide as a result of bullying. Adults who participated in the interviews were named, but students interviewed remained anonymous.

Students performed the finished piece for their classmates before its premiere at the playhouse.

“It’s a serious topic,” he said. “But there are moments of humor in talking about the topic. It’s not a TV or movie-of-the-week.”

Blasi said all of the reviews she heard about the show were positive and said the show addressed an important conversation that needs to be had.

“When I was younger, I got picked on,” she said. “I feel like it affects a lot of people and it’s a thing that doesn’t get talked about.”

She said students throughout the process felt “empowered” to be involved in the production.

D’Agostino called the play a “hopeful story,” noting that Upper Dublin is a “good school and the school has taken steps . But there is more we can do.”